Archive for June 2010

According to the NY Daily News: “The Knicks could also have the inside track on signing free agent point guard Luke Ridnour whose price tag is too high for Milwaukee. Ridnour would serve as the perfect mentor for second-year point guard Toney Douglas, having been used in a similar role last season with the Bucks and their rookie Brandon Jennings.”

My take: For the second time in his seven year career Ridnour appeared in all 82 games last season. He averaged 10.4 points, 4 assists and scored 0.8 three pointers in 21 minutes per game. Ridnour, set career highs in field goal percentage (47.8), three point percentage (38.1) and free throw percentage (90.7). He has made $6.5 million in each of the past three seasons and is 29 years old which means the Knicks should not overpay.

According to RealGM and the NY Post “The Knicks will send other front office members to meet with Kyle Korver, Mike Miller and Ray Allen. The Knicks are in the market for another three-point shooter to spread the floor in …

“David Kahn says he plans to call two agents at 11 o’clock Wednesday, when the NBA’s free-agency negotiation period begins. I hear from a good league source that one of those two guys is Memphis forward Rudy Gay.

The question about Gay is whether the Wolves would try to package a front-loaded offer too painful for the Grizzlies to match or whether they’d try to strike a sign-and-trade deal.”

My take: The Wolves will have about $13.1 million in cap space. With the third pick in the NBA Draft the Wolves selected small forward Wes Johnson who plays the same position as Gay.They also acquired Lazar Haywood (last pick in the first round) and Martell Webster.

With the additions they made so far it is not an ideal fit for Gay. Unless, they play him or Johnson at the two guard. As a fan it would be fun to watch two players playing together who are very similar in size and skill set. Ideally, …

Whiteside was a projected first round pick by several mock drafts. He led the nation in blocks per game (5.4) and was selected as the C-USA Defensive Player of the Year. His 182 blocks was the fourth most for one season in Division 1 history. He is 7”0″ with a 7-7 wingspan and 9-5 reach.

The Kings boast an impressive front court with this year’s top pick DeMarcus Cousins, Samuel Dalembert, Carl Landry and Jason Thompson. Whiteside could have a future with the Kings considering Dalembert and Landry will be free agents at the end of next season.

Teams had concerns over his maturity (showed up the combine in flip flops) and his recent diagnosis with ADD. He is raw on the offensive side and considered a bad passer (10 assists in 34 games) which also caused him to slide. However, this was still an excellent value pick based on the the upside.

“Plugged-in sources saying Knicks high on Joe Johnson’s list of teams,”Broussard wrote on his Twitter page.”

Pros: If LeBron James, does not come to NY then JJ could be a “suitable” replacement. He has made the All-Star team in four straight seasons and this past season was named to All-NBA Third Team. His size (6’7″-240), versatility and shooting ability has quietly turned him into of the elite guards in the league.

In his five years with the Hawks he has averaged 21.9 points, 5.4 assists and 4.3 rebounds.This past regular season he was one of seven players to average 20+ points and 4.9+ assists.

Johnson is familiar with Knicks Head Coach Mike D’Antoni, since he played for him in two seasons with Phoenix. In 04-05 Johnson set career highs in 3-point field goals (177) and rebounds per game (5.2).

Cons: While, Johnson is a consistent and crafty player he is not a LeBron James or Dwayne Wade.

The Knicks have to bring in the senior point guard from Kansas. Despite his inconsistent senior season (15.5 points and 4.5 assists) he averaged 18.9 points and 5 assists in his junior season.

One of the reasons he was not one of the 60 players drafted was his size and conditioning leading up to the draft. He is 5’11” and is weight has fluctuated from 209 to 227 the past two months.He also had nagging injuries during the pre-draft process. If he can get down to playing weight the winningest player in KU history (130 wins) would provide depth for the Knicks.

Collins already has an invitation to join the Charlotte Bobcats summer league team. Bobcats Head Coach Larry Brown is a former KU coach.

Brian Zoubeck:

I saw reports the Knicks could have drafted him in the second round because they liked his size and grit. The 7″1″ center would fill a need since the Knicks lack size upfront. Zoubeck clogs the lanes and can rebound. He set a Duke …

“Donnie Walsh said he sees Rautins, who spent much of his pre-draft workout with the Knicks at the point, as a combo guard, and described Fields as “super athletic.”

I did not expect New York to draft Andy Rautins or Landry Fields. However, the draft strategy changed when Armon Johnson, Terrico White and Darington Hobson all were selected in the second round right before the Knicks. I see the plan now was draft to combo guard that can shoot and an athletic wing player that scan score.

I thought the Knicks were going to spend one pick or size and the other on a guard. Hassan Whiteside slipped all the way to the second round I would have liked the Knicks to land him. Unlike last year the Knicks did not purchase a first rounder.

Also it was a bit of head scratcher when the Knicks passed up on Lance Stephenson and Jarvis Varnado who ironically were the next two picks after the Knicks. Jerome Jordan, Gani Lawlal, Willie Warren, Derrick Caracter and Solomon Alabi were also available.

“Nets and Bucks still finalizing the 2nd-round pick in Chris Douglas-Roberts deal, but one team exec. says won’t be 44 now”

“If not for a second-rounder this year, than for future considerations”.

My take: The Nets already hold the Nos. 3, 27, 31 in the upcoming draft. After a promising first half of the season CDR saw his points and minutes drop drastically in the second half. He shot just 26% from three in his second season. CDR was a second round pick in 2008 (40th overall).

He is very active on Twitter and his comments during the losing streak got him fined and later benched by Kiki Vandeweghe.

Douglas-Roberts was set to make $854,000 in the upcoming season, and it was a team option.

Bucks GM John Hammond made a trade earlier in the day acquiring Corey Maggette from the Warriors for Charlie Bell and Dan Gadzuric.

New Jersey looks to develop the three picks they have this year to go …

“There may have been another shift in the speculation surrounding where LeBron James will sign when he becomes a free agent in less than two weeks.

During an interview on ESPN Radio in New York, Stephen A. Smith said sources have told him that James is now leaning toward signing with the Knicks and that this factor played a role in Tom Izzo turning down the Cavs’ head coaching job.

“LeBron didn’t speak to Izzo because he doesn’t want to have anything to do with who the next coach of the Cavs is going to be just in case he leaves,” Smith said.

“From what my sources tell me, he still hasn’t made a final decision but he’s higher on New York now than he was a month ago. And the reality is that he is leaning more towards New York than he is towards returning to Cleveland. Izzo knew this,” he said.

Game 7 was an epic game filled with defensive battles, with the Lakers winning 83-79.

LA became the seventh team ever to face a 3-2 deficit in the Finals to come back to win the final two games. They have now won five titles in the past 11 seasons.

Phil Jackson is now 48-0 when his team wins Game 1 of a playoff series and has won a record 11 titles as a Head Coach.

Key reasons:

1) Defense: The Celtics limited LA to score 34 in the first half but they managed to score 40. Derek Fisher was the only player to shoot over 50 percent from the field (4-6).core 40. They gave the Lakers fits on defense by rotating and switching well.

However, allowing 23 offensive rebounds, committing 15 turnovers and sending the Lakers to the line 37 times overshadows the defensive effort.

Ray Allen and Paul Pierce shot a combined 8-29. The 33 percent Pierce shot from the field was his second lowest total for the Finals. Boston also allowed 30 points in the fourth quarter.

Since 1959 the Celtics have beaten the Lakers all four times in a Game 7. However, this Boston team lacks a Bill Russel or Larry Bird. Last night reminded us this was the same team that finished 27-27 over the final 54 games of the regular season.

Rajon Rondo picked the wrong time to have the worst game of the Finals. Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett failed to attempt a free throw and Ray Allen was the only Celtic to score over 13 points.

It also appeared the refs were on the Lakers side last night, but that’s another topic for discussion.

1) Home court advantage: In the NBA Finals the home team has won 13 of the previous 16 Game 7s, including the four most recent ones.

2) The injury to Kendrick Perkins and the health of Andrew Bynum: Perkins sprained his right knee with 5 minutes and 30 seconds left in the first quarter and did not return. By the end of the first quarter Pau Gasol …

Here is a look at five players all earning over $10+ million for next season

Rashard Lewis ($20.5 million) Lewis will be the highest paid player on the Orlando Magic roster for the next three seasons. Since joining the Magic in 07-08, his regular season scoring has declined the past three seasons. He had a dreadful conference finals vs. the Celtics averaging just 8.2 points (34 percent from the field). The last time he scored under 15 points in a season was 2000-2001. He also missed the first 10 games of the season because of a failed drug test. Lewis is a good player because of his size and shooting ability but does deserve to earn more than Dwight Howard.

Elton Brand ($15.9 million) Brand averaged his lowest point (13.1), rebounds (6.1) and blocks (1.1) of his career last season. Before signing with the Philadelphia 76ers he was a big injury risk playing in only 37 games in a two-year span. In February and March he averaged under 13 points and April was his worst month …

Despite missing 28 regular season games (injury) his real value has come in the postseason. In Game 4 of the NBA Finals he scored 18 points with four offensive rebounds and two steals. “Big Baby” has the ability to out muscle his opponents in the paint and has been a key reserve during the Celtics playoff run. Davis is 24 years old and next season will be a contract year.

Andray Blatche ($3.2 million)

Gilbert Arenas was suspended for 50 games. Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood were traded during the season. All of these factors allowed Blatche to breakout. With four original starters removed from the Washington Wizards, the offense was mainly run through Blatche.

Over his last 32 games he averaged 22.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.5 steals in 37 minutes per game. In his fifth season these were easily all career highs. The Syracuse born player will be 24 years old in August and is a rising star in the Eastern Conference.

To me, I don't see how anyone could make the argument that this year's squad has worse talent than last year's. Gomez, Zherdev, Antropov, Mara for Gaborik, Prospal, Anisimov, Del Zotto. That's a no-brainer to me. If we can agree to that, then we can forget about Sather for the time-being, and there really are […]

I am one of the crazy few who thinks LT is a better fit here than TJ... Assuming of course that Shonn Greene is the new sheriff in town. Neither Greene nor Jones are the threat out of the backfield that LT is, even at this advanced stage in his career. The crux of it, […]

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